While President-elect Donald Trump has openly described the country’s situation and economy as a “disaster” and a “total mess,” President Joe Biden stated that Trump offered praise for some of his economic initiatives in a private discussion.

“He was very complimentary about some of the economic things I had done,” Biden remarked during a 55-minute interview with YSL News. “And he mentioned that he believed I was leaving office with a good record.”

Inflation and elevated prices were significant concerns for voters in the 2024 election, contributing to Trump’s victory over Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee, in November.

Despite many Americans still feeling financial strain, inflation has decreased from a peak of 7.1% in early 2022 to 2.4% as of November. The U.S. economy is anticipated to gradually grow this year.

However, Biden and Harris have faced pushback from citizens nationwide regarding the economy’s status, even as it has started to recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the lead-up to the election, over half of Americans (52%) reported feeling worse off than they did a year prior, according to a Gallup survey released in September. At that time, a significant majority (62%) expressed that they believed the economy was “getting worse,” compared to just 32% who felt it was “getting better.”

During his time in office, Biden implemented the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan aimed at revitalizing growth and employment that suffered due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Nonetheless, critics of the plan, particularly Republican lawmakers, have accused him of contributing to inflation.

Trump’s economic plans

Despite Biden’s remarks about Trump’s private praise, the president-elect has outlined his own economic plans for the U.S.

Trump has committed to not only extending but also enhancing the extensive tax cuts established during his first term. Additionally, he has promised to impose significant tariffs and deport millions of undocumented immigrants, a step that some economic analysts warn could trigger inflation again and hinder economic growth.

Conversely, others believe that his tax cut pledges and commitments to reduce regulations on businesses could stimulate the economy, yielding mixed results for inflation.

“On January 20, we’re going to rapidly turn around the economy,” Trump stated during a press conference at Mar-a-Lago on Tuesday. “When I consider our economy, my primary focus is inflation; it’s unprecedented. And in the next four years, the United States will soar like a rocket.”